How To Best Prepare Your Children For The New Pregnancy

It is a natural reaction for you to want to share the news with the entire world the moment you discover that you are, once again, pregnant.  This includes your children.  But breaking the news to your kids is not the same as telling another adult.  The best way for you to let your children know about this most recent development will depend on their specific age.  A six or seven-year-old child will not have any difficulty in understanding what you mean when you tell him or her that they will soon have a little brother or little sister.  On the other hand, you will find it much more difficult if you try to explain the same thing to a toddler.

You must take in the particular personality of your child when it comes time to decide how best to break the news to him or her.  No one knows your child better than you do, and so only you can determine whether they might enjoy the challenge of figuring it out with little clues, as was the case with their father, or whether they prefer to be told outright.  Lady luck could smile upon you and have your child walk right into the room as you are in the middle of breaking the news to someone else, but this is unlikely.  So think about how best to tell them about something which will bring significant changes into their lives.

THEIR REACTION:

Do not be too shocked if, upon being told, your child initially becomes distant, keep in mind that all children have their own unique way of reacting to news.  Another pretty common reaction is for your child to pretend that he or she is also pregnant, and begin to mimmick many of the things you do.  It is also not uncommon for the child to react by saying that he or she does not want you bringing home another baby.  It is not the particular reaction, but rather how you handle it, which will determine the end result of this bit of information being shared with your children.
 
In the case of your child seeming reluctant to accepting another sibling, it may be a good idea for you to find out why he or she feels that way.  The only proper way of doing this is to ask him/her outright.  You may find that he or she is simply afraid that you will no longer love them the same way as before, or that they will be ignored once the new baby arrives.  The solution for this is simple but constant reassurance that such is not the case.

MAKE THEM FEEL THEY ARE IMPORTANT AS WELL

One good way of going about this is to ensure that each of your children gets something of their very own the moment the new baby is born such as their very own baby-doll, for example.  And make sure the father makes the conscious effort to spend even more time with the children while you are pregnant, even if you may not be able to do so yourself.

GET YOUR CHILD INVOLVED IN YOUR PREGNANCY

Since this is also going to be their baby brother or sister, why not have them tag along with you to one or more of your scheduled visits to the doctor.  This will also be a great learning experience for them, and just watch as their entire face lights up when they see the new baby for the very first time on the ultrasound.  There are countless ways to get the children involved, just be creative and have patience with them, this is not going to be the easiest change for them either.

Resources:
www.pregnancyandbaby.com
www.parenting.ivillage.com/pregnancy/pbabyprep/topics
www.pregnancy.families.com